Take Off the Mask, 'Cause I see You Now
by shoptopgamergirl
Summary: FIRST FAN FICTION! ENJOY! Iris, a fourteen year-old assassin, is sent on a stealthy and dangerous mission. After being caught, she's forced to follow a certain person around in hopes of her regaining her freedom... and learns something lief-changing. How will she deal with being confronted by the past she thought she forget, and the new friends she didn't know she had? SYNC x OC
1. I Hate That Green-Haired Boy

I hated myself for not sneaking in earlier.

The guards weren't even paying attention half the time.

But today was perfect.

The guards in front of the tall, impressive building were quite weak. It had only taken me what; two minutes to take them all down?

I stepped over the moaning, groaning bodies as they tossed and turned on ground. I hadn't shot them or anything. No, all it had taken was a few 'accidental' crashes into one another and a few hits on the head, and they were out cold, groaning like they had just threw up their breakfast. (Which a few them did, which I found both revolting and pitiful at the same time.) No, I was saving my bullets for my real target. But for now, the guns did make perfect metal hunks for hitting. I had taken out the cartridges for now. Gripping the handles of the guns in my hand tightly, I stepped through the wrought iron gates.

They really needed better security. I smirked as I looked back at the men on the ground. THAT was ALL of them? I thought that was about what, a quarter? And they had all been beaten by ONE fourteen year old? (I'm not trying to be narcissists or anything.)

Too bad for them.

This only made finding my target easier. I would have loved to have asked for a lesson from her instead, but my obligation right now was my mission. I'd heard about all those other assassins out there who were up for hire.

Me? No, I work for only my organization. And there have been lots of demands about getting this one woman. I quickly strode across the campus, the two thin, long strips of cloth at my waist flapping behind me in the wind.

Once I reached the door, I looked all around the building. At last I spotted a window.

Taking a running start, I dashed up a little bit of the wall, then dug my fingers into the cracks and grooves for a better hold. I hoisted myself through the window, careful to land as lightly a possible on my feet. My skirt fluttered as I leaped down.

Once on the ground, I shoved my bullets into the barrel of my gun. _This is all too easy._ I thought to myself. _Surely there must be some form of interior defense? _I crept up to the corner, slowly checking around the corner. _Just my lucky day!_ I thought, marveling at my luck.

The blonde haired woman was right around the corner, and I had a PERFECT view of her heart.

"Sorry about this." I mumbled. But before I could squeeze the trigger, someone kicked my gun out of my hand.

_Crap! This is not good. _I began to reach for my other gun when I felt something sharp prick the side of my throat. Then that person was also pinning my arms behind my back. I should have known one of the God Generals was on the prowl.

How did I know it was a God-General?

Well, this person actually had a sense of tact.

"Who the hell are you, and what are you doing here?" A voice hissed into my ear. It was male, and it sounded like a boy round my age. Except his voice was cold and emotionless, like someone had stolen all of his personality and replaced it with an empty void.

"Drop the gun, or else I'll have to kill you." He hissed again. Except this time his voice was more like a snarl. I lifted my hand up, still holding the gun, and began to let it slide, pointing downwards…

But at the last moment I grabbed the trigger and squeezed. I had been aiming for his leg, but I missed by a few inches and shot his foot instead.

At least it still worked.

He cried out, and his grip on the knife wavered.

I took that chance and elbowed him in the chest.

And I elbowed him HARD.

He let out a grunt and staggered back. Then I turned and ran.

I swore under my breath. Legretta had most definitely heard the shot, and I think she ran to call for backup. I turned back.

Crap. She was too far, and I couldn't get a good enough aim. But the boy seemed to be recovering fairly quickly. I pulled two throwing stars patterned with Ying and Yang and turned towards him.

_Whoa._ He was wearing a ridiculously stupid mask. It looked like a long, metal beak, and covered almost all his face except for his mouth. _And he has….. GREEN HAIR? _I snapped back to focus. _Shut up, you stupid inner voice! _I mentally yelled at myself.

Yes, he was definitely my age. Which meant he had to be…

"You little TWERP! I'm going to have your head for that!" He snarled.

I tossed one of my throwing stars towards him, but he jerked his head away, causing it to thud into the wall next to his ear.

"You're not getting away that easily. Not until I'm finished with you," He growled.

I had to admit: He sounded pretty damn scary.

I reeled back my next throwing star while pointing my gun at him.

I was fast.

But he was faster.

He was on top of me in a second, pinning my arms to the ground and yanking the gun from my hand. I heard him mutter words I couldn't understand, then next thing I knew, my body was on fire.

My head pounded, and it felt as if I had been drenched in a vat of oil then tied to a stake that was set on fire.

I tried to hold it in.

Really, I tried. (I do have a reputation you know)

But then the burning sensation became so unbearable that I couldn't help it.

I screamed.

Then I lost consciousness.

"_IRIS!" The green haired boy yelled. All I felt was immense pain in my side, as if someone had just impaled me. I looked down and saw the sharp, metallic blade that ran through my side. _

_I didn't feel anything. _

_The cold all around me numbed the pain._

"_IRIS!" He yelled again._

"_Sync….." I mumbled. I saw my friends reaching towards me, their eyes pleading._

_But I already knew it was too late._

_I fell to the ground, watching the gaping horror on all my friends faces. I smiled, one last time, looking towards them all. I filled with pride._

"_Keep on fighting…and… never give….. u-up…" I sighed and closed my eyes. I felt my body drift away, and arms wrap around me. _

"_No, Iris. Not like this…__ you can't leave me yet….."_

Then I was jolted awake. I whipped my head up, only to get a mouth full of my own eggplant-violet hair.

I spluttered. "Pluh!"

"Good. You're finally awake." I heard a familiar voice say. My head whipped up.

"Where are you?" I snarled, my golden eyes searching the shadows around me.

_Where the hell is he?_! My brain screamed.

"Right here." He replied. I sensed a smirk in his voice.

I watched as he peeled himself from out of the shadows, emerging just in front of me. He still had that ridiculous mask.

"TEMPEST." I snarled.

I tensed as he stepped forward. He had a smirk on his face, and right then I wished with all my might that I had my guns, a knife, or anything to exact my revenge.

"Don't worry. I'm not allowed to hurt you," He chuckled. "YET."

_What the hell did that mean? _I glared at him with all my might, wishing that my eyes were lasers. He glared right back. A round of glaring played off, until finally I heard a door swing open from somewhere in the darkness.

I jerked my head towards the darkness.

Then the only six other people I didn't want to see appeared behind Sync, each of them staring at me like a monster. I looked down.

No, wonder. I was tied up to a chair.

Did I care?

No. _Go ahead. Let them think you're a monster. After all, isn't that what you are?_ I told myself.

Then a bronze-haired, tanned-skinned man stepped in front of me, placing a hand on Sync's shoulder.

"Sync, you can back down. Trust me, we will have the DISCUSSION that we need." The man told him. Sync retreated to stand by the others, and the bronze-haired guy stepped up to me.

"Hello." He began. _Stupid introductions are coming,_ I readied myself. "I am Van, and these are the Six God-Generals." _I knew it._

"They are my elite task force. They are well-known across this region as the most strongest military enforcers here," _Yep, the usual declaration of power._

"…And what I want to know is why YOU, a young, small (I flinched at that word) girl, who looks barely over the age of thirteen, came to ASSASINATE Legretta. And once we are over, I WILL find out exactly why." He said, in a both calm and menacing tone.

"First, you will start by telling us your name."

I just stared at him. They would have to put me through hell and back to find out my name; much less where I came from and what I was doing here. The others would have my HEAD if they found out.

I just smiled defiantly, and raised my chin, looking him square in the eyes.

"NO." I said.

"This is your second chance to-" I cut him off.

"I said, NO."

He looked grimly over at Legretta, the one who I had failed to kill, (Dammit) and nodded his head. I watched her intently as she stepped up to my chair, unsheathing menacing looking guns. I didn't even flinch as she pointed one in my direction.

"You WILL tell us now." She said, grimly, her face un-changing, "Or else I will be forced to do something I would rather not."

I knew they wouldn't kill me. I had already figured out that much. _They need to keep me alive to know who sent me, and so they can either wipe them out, or prepare for another attack. _

So again, I just raised my chin defiantly.

And she squeezed the trigger.

Immense pain flared up in my shoulder, and I winced. The force of the shot threw my chair off balance, but at least it didn't send me toppling over.

"Tell us NOW!" Van said, raising his voice into a growl.

I smiled. _I knew it. They wouldn't kill me. But at least I had a little fun… _Legretta raised the gun again.

"Iris," I mumbled, gritting my teeth against the pain. Legretta frowned. Clearly she hadn't heard me. She slowly began squeezing, but van placed a hand on the gun.

"What?" He demanded in a cold, empty voice.

"Iris. My name….. is Iris." I repeated. I smirked with my head tilted down, then lifted it.

I already knew that my life had just turned into a living hell.


	2. What did you say

Being shot in the shoulder hurts like hell.

But being dragged away in a tight grip by the same arm which had just got shot; now that makes you wish that your limb would just fall off already.

Legretta and Sync marched over to me and curled their fingers around my fore-arms, lifting me up with a quick jerk of their arms.

_How inconsiderate ARE these idiots? God, I'm still a person. _I gritted my teeth against the pain in a determination to remain professional. I didn't look at them but set my golden eyes in front of me, not even daring to shoot my usual frisky eyes to the side.

_Don't look, don't look, don't look. _I repeated to myself in my mind, willing my head to keep dead ahead.

I would love to say that my pure concentration kept my head still, but sadly, my stupid head jerked to the side of its own accord.

Legretta had her jaw clenched tightly and had her eyes set on the cold hallway ahead. Her fingers gripped my un-injured arm tightly, and she rested her free hand one on her gun. I saw her fingers twitch as I looked at them, the spikes on their bands gleaming in the tiny ounce of light.

I turned to the other side where Sync had my injured arm.

He was being less decent to my arm as Legretta was.

His fist was like his own miniature boa constrictor, tightening if I even dared to move. I could practically feel all my blood circulation draining, and I wished I had a lamp, paddle, or anything really to whack him in the head.

My eyes snapped to my waist where my belt was. My familiar throwing stars and knives were missing, now confiscated by the God-generals. I scowled deeply. Now I had no way to protect myself, let alone get out of here alive.

"I can walk, you know." I scoffed. The two just glimpsed at me for a second but didn't respond. I tried jerking my arms away, but let out a tiny whimper as Sync's gloved fingers pressed even tighter.

Blood was pouring out of my wound now, and I felt faint looking at it. Sure, I had seen blood before, but I had never bothered to watch and stare at the red liquid.

"I can walk. Let me go." I tried again. They still didn't let go. If possible, my scowl deepened.

"Here's a reason for me not to run; I'm bleeding out here, your guards would probably kill me on the spot, and even if I did escape, I have no gald."

Legretta's grip loosened a bit, but she didn't let go. I said nothing. These idiots were impossible to compromise with.

"Can you please stop squeezing my arm so hard?! I'll probably be dead before you can even heal me if you keep gripping me like that." I snarled at the masked boy. He frowned and leaned close to my ear.

"Go ahead. Do us a favor." He smirked.

"Well, if I'm dead, how are you supposed to figure where I come from?" I responded slyly. He didn't stop that emotionless look, but only said.

"We have our ways. Now shut up and keep moving."

I scowled, defeated, and I let them drag me into a large, wooden door. Legretta dropped my arm and pushed me into a chair, but Sync's push was more like a shove. I stumbled and fell into the chair.

"Watch it!" I cried, gripping my shoulder with my now free hand. They both ignored me and turned around. Legretta walked across the room and rooted around in a large drawer until she pulled out a long strip of cloth.

"Hold still." She commanded me in a cold voice. Leaning over, she brought what looked like clippers from behind her back. My eyes widened and I pulled away.

"Relax. I need to remove the bullet, and if you don't stop jerking around you might find it much less comfortable with a deeper hole in your arm." I watched and swallowed as she leaned forward, gently reaching towards my wound. I cried out as the clipper things wrapped around the bullet, but I kept still.

She pulled it out gently, and my arm felt as if it were on fire. Tears came to my eyes, but I refused to cry. I bit my lip so hard, I tasted blood.

"This is going to hurt, so hold still." Sync walked over with a weird, gloopy mixture in his hand. It smelled terrible, but I held still. (Thank goodness.)

He dipped his fingers in it then pressed it to the wound. A searing, fiery pain burst into my shoulder and I yelled a little, gripping the arms of the chairs so hard I felt blisters begin to bloom.

"Shut up. I need to concentrate." Sync scowled. He kept on applying the weird concoction to my shoulder slowly, and the fire—eventually—died down.

I slumped in the chair, all my energy taken out of me as Legretta wrapped the strip of cloth around my shoulder. My eyes felt heavy, and I was having difficulty blinking.

"Rest." Legretta commanded. I felt my lips begin to form a protest, but I was out before I could even utter a word.

Iris woke up in a cold, cramped cell. She was lying face pointed up towards the ceiling, and her hands on either side of her.

And; her head ached.

"Oh…" She muttered, pushing herself up. Her head pounded for a few moments and spots whirred across her vision, but then she could finally see.

Cold, metal floor pressed into her palms, and the air around her was stiff and stale. She coughed a bit, then gently stood up, using the wall for support. She moaned a little bit, but lifted her head to look around the cell. It was a small, U-shaped room that had the opening closed off by thick, metal bars.

Iris brushed her violet strands away from her eyes and looked around the rest of the room. A tiny, uncomfortable-looking cot sat in the corner (Which she was glad she didn't sleep on) and a tiny metal bucket lay in the other.

Iris wrinkled her nose in disgust when she saw the bucket.

_Ewww! That's gross! _She stood up and brushed off her grey skirt. Sauntering over to the bars casually, she felt around her head for the hairpin she knew she had hidden deep inside. She rifled through for a bit before yanking it out.

A silver strip of hair fell out of place and into her eyes, but she didn't bother to brush it away as she examined the lock on the door. Her fingers twisted and bent the hairpin delicately so it wouldn't snap.

When she was ready, she stuck her—thin—arms through the bars.

_Thank Lorelai form my tiny body! _She prayed. Iris shoved the pin into the lock and twisted, hearing a small click. She gently pushed the door open, but before she could step foot outside her cell, a voice stopped her.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you." A young, red-haired man stepped out of the shadows. He had his sword drawn and pointed at her dangerously.

"Asch the Bloody." She spat. Her eyes were fixated on him as he stepped towards her slowly.

"You won't get far with that wound of yours." He gestured to her shoulder. She scowled and grabbed the bandaging.

"I'm not so weak, you know."

"I know. That's why I'm here."

"Where are the guards?"

"They put me here instead. Now stop asking questions and get back in the cell." He gestured to the cramped room.

"What if I don't want to?" She inquired. She began walking the other direction, but he pressed his sword against her neck.

"Then I think this will be a rather interesting encounter." He responded. She looked at his blade, then began to smirk.

"I'm not so easily out done." She then back flipped away, kicking his sword with the tip of her boots. She landed, crouched on the ground. Right next to the door.

"This has been fun. We should do it again." She smirked, before dashing down the hallway.

_Well, that was easier than I expected. _She turned a few corners then looked back to see if anyone was following her.

Bad mistake.

The moment she turned her head, she ran right into a solid something blocking her path. She stumbled and fell back a little. The colossal man leaned over her like a giant statue, black eyes boring into her.

"And where exactly are you going?" She jumped up and turned around, only to have Asch dash in front of her, ultimately blocking her escape.

_Damn it! _She thought in defeat.

"Come with me. Van needs to speak with you." Largo told her gruffly. She felt gint hands wrap around her wrists and she struggled against them.

"Let me go!" She cried, kicking out, but to no success. She wriggled her hands but only felt the colossal ones clamp even tighter. Then the older man began leading her down the hallway, pushing her in a forward direction. She sighed and let them lead her into a doorway.

Once inside, she saw Van look up from behind his desk and stare at her quizzically. Largo let go of her hands an she pulled away, rubbing her wrists.

"Iris." Van nodded to her. She only glared at him, her hands fiddling with the golden locket at her neck.

"Let's take a walk." Van said calmly, pushing himself out of the chair.

Van and Iris were outside now, sitting in the front of the magnificent headquarters. He was asking her questions like 'where do you come from', 'why did you want to kill Legretta', and 'who are you'. This only aggravated her more. She would never tell him what he wanted to know, so she mostly came back with replies such as 'can't tell you', or 'I don't know.'

Eventually an exasperated Van sighed and waved at the guards, ordering them to place iron cuffs on her arms.

She just scowled at the men, but let them clamp them on her. They led her back to Van's office and sat her down again, stationing themselves outside the room.

"Iris, that leaves me with only two options; either we kill you, or you tell us what we need to know. The small girl only looked at him.

"I think I won't go with either of those options." She shrugged. Van looked at her for a moment than began smiling.

Iris had to admit; even though he seemed quite calm, she was afraid of what he was going to say next.

"We could have you go with Sync on his mission… that way he could watch over you while getting his task done."

Iris looked at him, horror drawn on her face.

"I think I'll go find a bridge to jump of now." She scowled.

"Well, I'm afraid that's the only option left….." Van continued.

"Besides, you did say you would not die, so, that's mainly your fault."

"I know what I said, Van. But why _him_?! Of all people it had to be him?!" She shrieked, her voice a few octaves higher than necessary.

"Sync is highly capable of watching over you." Van stated, not glancing up from the papers he was examining.

"Besides, he needs the practice." The bronze-haired man turned to the Knights stationed by the door.

"Bring Sync in, please." He ordered them. In the next few moments, Sync was standing beside the chair next to me, a bored expression playing across his face.

"Yes?" He asked Van.

"Sync, I need you to take her with you on your mission. I believe you will be able to watch over her properly until she is ready to… talk." Van explained. Sync stood there for a minute and I relished in the scowl his mouth was forming. I looked at that mask of his, waiting for him to say something.

"You want me to _what_?" he snarled.


	3. Ready? Set! SIGH

"You heard me. I need you to look after her for the time being. It seems quite appropriate, and I'm sure she won't get in your way," Van said, turning to the small girl. "Right, Iris?"

She just let out a small huff and frowned a bit.

"Good. Now Sync, Asch will tell you exactly where you need to go. I will also give you the necessary supplies. Iris will be given something to wear, apart from…." The bronze-haired man gestured to her apparel "… what she has now."

"What's that supposed to mean?" iris hissed and stood up in her chair.

Van only kept calmly observing the map on his desk.

"It means that you won't be so noticeable in the crowd. And I don't think that who ever you work for will be able to recognize you as well."

Iris scowled at him, but sat back down in the chair.

She had to admit; he had a good point. The others would be out looking for her anytime soon. She remembered what Jalek had told her before she had left…..

"_Iris, remember that if you get caught, don't come back." He had said, pulling her behind a tree in the grassy courtyard. _

"_Why?" Iris tilted her head to the side quizzically._

"_You know the saying. 'If one does not come, the others are put at stake.'" He told her._

"_Yes, I know, but why can't I come back?" She wondered. Jalek sighed and brushed his black bangs away from his eyes._

"_Don't you understand, iris? They'll kill you! 'if one does not come back, the others are at stake.' They will be willing to kill you to protect our secret!" He said, raising his voice a few octaves higher. Iris didn't even register this as a shock._

"_Sadly, this doesn't come to a surprise to me." She sighed. The sunlight filtered through the leaves of the oak and landed on her golden eyes, illuminating them. Jalek gulped to contain his heart beating. He absolutely hated how she made him feel._

"_Don't you care?" He asked her, grabbing her shoulders and staring at her intently._

"_Of course I do!" She responded. She took his hands off her shoulders and held them at his sides._

"_Jalek, you have always been such a great friend to me,"—his heart drooped when she said this—"But I have every confidence I will not fail." And with that, she turned and walked away, leaving a solemn Jalek to lean on the tree._

Oh how she wished she hadn't said such a stupid thing. She kept up his hopes for returning, but now here she was, stuck in the clutches of the God-Generals.

But she brushed away that thought.

So, iris just stared at Van and waited for him to finish.

"… so, that leaves us at where iris should get her new clothes. Not to mention was that black band off your face." The man said, looking at her.

"Why do I have to give my identity away to? You already know my name, and I'll already be killed for that. I refuse to let you take away my privacy so-" She was quieted when a hand reached over and dragged itself down the front of her face.

"Just shut up. It's annoying hear all your complaining." Tempest growled.

"Hey!" She scowled at him, grabbing the cloth of his glove and jerking his hand off her eyes. She touched her cheek, and saw black paint on her fingers.

_Sync you jerk! _She yelled in her head, turning and snarling at him.

"Iris, you will have to wash the rest off later after you've changed. For now, go with Legretta and find some clothes." Van said, waving away the fact that black paint was smudged all over her face.

"Ah, Legretta." Van said. Iris turned to the woman in the doorway. She still retained the regal yet respected look to her, and looked at Van.

"What is it you wanted me to do?"

"Legretta, can you please find something for her to wear? And also, can you please help her wash that paint off?" He addressed her.

"Yes Van." Legretta nodded to the man. She then turned to iris.

"Come."

Iris stood up, hands still cuffed, and walked next to her. She scowled at the green-haired god general one more time before stepping out of the door.

Sync was relieved when the girl left.

No, make that more like giddy when she left, except more serious, because he didn't really do giddy.

He turned to Van.

"You want me to work with _that girl_?" He asked coldly. He emphasized the words 'that girl' with extra annoyance.

"Yes, I expect you to work with _Iris._" He corrected. Sync only stared blankly at him before responding.

"Why can't she go with Arietta or Legretta? Even Asch or Largo." He asked. He left out Dist.

"Iris was the one who tried to kill Legretta, Largo is busy with other matters, Arietta is capable, but also busy, Asch wasn't capable of keeping her in her cell, and that leaves you as the perfect candidate," Van replied simply. Sync crossed his arms, but didn't respond.

"Good. Now, about the equipment…"

Iris watched as Legretta sorted through her wardrobes, looking for something for the small teen to wear. Finally, she pulled out the perfect outfit; and it fit to.

"Here. Get changed." Legretta said, tossing the small girl her new clothes.

"You want me to wear _these_?" Iris asked, looking at the clothes as she held them up in front of her. The light streaming through the window shone on the black outfit accented with purple.

"Bu then I'll look exactly like the God-Generals."

"So?" Legretta asked, her hands resting on her guns.

"_So, _won't people be suspicious when they see me dressed like this? There are only _six _God-Generals, not seven." Iris replied.

"Iris, put those on, or wear this." Legretta held up a very ugly pair of jeans with an oracle knight vest and brown tank. The teen wrinkled her nose and said;

"I think I'll wear this."

"Good. Now put it on."

"I can't. My hands are cuffed." She sibilated. Legretta came over and unlocked them, the iron clinking as it hit the ground.

So Iris ducked into a corner and slipped on the outfit slowly. She liked the way it looked, that was for sure, but she looked—she had to admit—_way _too much like a God-General.

She stepped out from the shadows, arms crossed behind her back.

"Happy now?"

Legretta looked Iris up and down for a moment.

"It looks good."

Indeed it did. It had black knee-high boots, a short skirt accented with purple, a detailed and small golden belt, a violet tank top, and a vest much like the oracle knights draped over it. She looked pretty cool.

The corners of Iris' mouth tilted up a little, but she hid it.

"Now, you need to wash that paint off your face." Legretta handed her a cloth and pointed to a sink in the room.

"I told you, I am not giving away my identity." Iris huffed and crossed her arms. Legretta sighed and looked at the girl.

"Either you do it, or I can do it." Iris looked at the woman. She didn't want her to wash off her mask, but it looked like there was no way out of this. So, she walked over to the sink and cupped a handful of water. She splashed it on her face a few more times until she was sure the paint was completely off.

Then she turned to the mirror.

_I never have really seen myself before…. _She thought in surprise. In the HQ, they never had any mirrors. The leaders always believed that if you looked in the mirror too many times, you would turn narcissistic.

But, before iris could admire her reflection or clothes, she whipped her head away and looked at the blonde woman.

"Okay. There. Satisfied?"

Legretta looked at the young girl for a moment before nodding. She looked much more older without that black mask on her face.

Then the door to Legretta's room swung open and hit the wall with a loud thud. Immediately, Iris' face grew flushed red, and her hands flew to a golden necklace that hung from her neck. The masked boy in the doorway had his arms crossed and was leaning all his weight on his left foot.

"Are you ready?" He asked, clearly bored. Iris' hand clenched into a fist, and she glared daggers at him.

"What the hell are you doing?! I could have been still getting dressed!" She growled. Sync just looked at her with the same emotionless expression and mumbled what sounded like an 'I don't care.'

Iris' face grew even redder. _He should care! _She screamed in her head. Instead, she just marched out the door into the hallway, and after a few moments, Sync turned to leave too.

Legretta sighed and put her hands over her eyes. How these two were to ever get along was a mystery to her.

Iris POV

After we had exited the building, I stopped at the steps of the building.

What if there were spies, right out here, right now? Jalek hadn't been exactly specific of hat they would do…..

So, I turned to the boy behind me.

"What are you doing? Move." He said. I just stood my ground and looked at him.

"You go first."

"Why? You're the captive. You go first."

"What if they see me?"

"I don't care. They can have you for all I care."

"I'm a _person _you know!"

"So? Just shut up and get a move on."

"You're even worse than a prison guard."

"I appreciate that. Now _move._" He shoved me and I stumbled down the steps, falling on my butt.

"Hey!" I whined. He just stepped past me and looked at me.

"Move." I stood up and walked ahead of him, muttering under my breath. I wished with all my might I could kick him right now, but I knew he would find some way to torture me, so I kept my leg still. (With quite some sheer willpower, I must admit.

When we crossed the courtyard, I paused.

"What now?" He sighed, exasperated.

"Won't it look suspicious if we go traipsing around town with me in hand cuffs?" I asked dubiously.

"No. Now let's go. We have to take a ferry to St. Binah, before they-" He stopped himself and grabbed my arm and dragged me along, my feet stumbling to keep up.

"Hey! I can walk you know!" I complained. "And you're gripping my arm to hard!" he just ignored me and dragged me all the way until we came to a wagon.

"Here. Take us to the docking station." Sync said, and tossed a few gald up to the driver. The man with the beard nodded and slipped down from his perch. Sync climbed in and sat inside, dropping our satchels into the department above our heads.

"Here, miss." The man smiled and held out the door for me. I stepped in and said a quick thank you before sliding into my seat.

I couldn't wait till we got out. It was bad enough with Mr. Grumpy, but sharing a cramped wagon with him is much worse.

When iris and Sync finally climbed out of the wagon, they had arrived at the port. A ferry was waiting. Sync quickly bought the tickets and they dashed inside before it left the docking station.

They walked up to the man who was taking the tickets and 'Mr. Grumpy' slapped them into his hand. Then the teen grabbed Iris' hand and dragged her to their room.

Once inside, Sync plopped the satchels on one of the beds.

"Let's get some rest. We'll need it when we reach St. Binah tomorrow."

"Okay." I said, and plopped down on one of the blue sheets. I didn't feel like arguing with a command that I definitely wanted to do. So, taking no recognition of him still awake, I curled onto my side and closed my eyes, falling into deep sleep.


	4. A New Day in Baticul

When Sync woke up, he saw Iris' face hovering in front of his mask.

He merely blinked his eyes underneath the golden covering.

"Sync? You awake yet?" Iris asked.

"Yes." He grumbled. He sat up and looked towards the window. The moon was still slowly disappearing behind the rolling waves.

"What are you doing up so early?" He asked her. He kept his voice emotionless, as usual.

She just shrugged, her violet hair cascading off her shoulders.

"I always wake up this early. It's kind of been a habit of mine." She replied. Her usual snarky ness was gone, replaced by a calm demeanor.

"You look tired." He commented.

"I do?" She reached towards her eyes. "Do I have bags under my eyes or something?"

"Yes."

"Great. I needed that this early." Her snarky ness was back.

She traced her fingers across the patterns on the floor as she sat there on the ground. He looked at her tiny, tired figure.

"Get back in bed. You need the rest." He told her.

"Do I _really_ look _that_ tired?" She asked one more time.

Emotionless, he again answered,

"Yes. Now get back to sleep."

She sat on the floor for a few moments, almost reluctantly, but decided to do so anyways. As she climbed back under the covers, she looked at his masked face.

"Aren't you going to go back to sleep to?" She asked, curious.

The boy looked at the moon still slowly sinking beneath the waves.

"No. I always wake up this early." He replied solemnly.

"Okay." She said, and then fell back asleep.

Sync looked out the window for a little while, and then decided to go out on deck. Climbing up the metal stairway, he emerged onto a moonlit deck.

_How does the captain keep going this long?_ He wondered silently. He sat near the edge of the railing, stretching one leg out and pulling the other near him. He rested his arm on his left leg, and gazed down at the water.

At night, it looked black as coal. By day, it was blue and clear. The breeze tousled his hair, and he felt a cool breeze go down his back.

He had nothing else to do, so he just sat there, staring at the water line in the distance, waiting until the sun rose.

When this time _I _woke up, sun was streaming in from the window above me.

"Ugh…." I groaned. I Faintly remembered Sync ordering me to go back to sleep a few hours before…..

_Wait, was he being NICE to me? It can't be….._ I realized, surprised. I turned towards his bed and found the covers made and our satchels tossed on the pillows.

_Where is he?_ I looked around the room, and found him standing up his back towards me.

"Good. You're finally awake." He said.

I just gawked at him.

_He has his shirt off. Why does he have his shirt off?_ I guess I was too silent.

He turned towards me. And I just gawked some more. He was _incredibly_ lean for being so skinny…. _Wait, what the hell am I thinking?! _

But then I saw the marking on his chest. It was gold, and took on the appearance of a soaring eagle, wings outstretched on either side.

I felt my face flush. This was sooooo embarrassing. And it didn't help that he was staring at me. I can take glaring, sneering, cowering, or any other form, except staring.

I guess I'm just not used to it.

"What?" He asked blankly. "Have you never seen some-one with their shirt off before?"

I just stammered out,

"N-no. Not r-really." I didn't mean to sound so weird. When he finally slipped his shirt and cloak back on, I felt myself grow relieved.

Drawing myself out of my stump, I asked what I had been meaning to ask all morning.

"Last night….. were you actually being _nice_ to me?" I said, raising my eyebrow.

I pushed myself up, feeling the warm, green covers slide off.

_GREEN._

Why was that color always so popular?

He looked at me.

"Now don't go thinking I did that because I was trying to help you. I just don't want to have to be slowed down by you." He responded with a smirk.

" How _considerate _of you," I huffed, sarcasm dripping from my voice. I pulled my covers fully off me. I noticed how crinkled and dirty my outfit was.

"Do you have any clothes, perchance? Or a tub of water, if you do?" I asked.

"No. just wait until we get into the city."

_The city? _I hadn't even realized that we had arrived yet. I just scowled at him. Finally, he grabbed my wrists and snapped the cuffs back on.

"Hey! What are these for?!" I shrieked at him. He smirked.

"You didn't think I was going to let you wander around again, did you?"

"Then why did you leave me in the room, alone, when you didn't go back to sleep?" I retorted. I was sure I had just won point two.

"Don't go getting ahead of yourself. I placed a seal on the door and window. Also on the stuff and any other places where you could easily access."

Crap. So he_ was _prepared.

As much as I hated to admit it, I sighed and mumbled,

"Point to Sync." To myself.

Once in the city, Sync glared at iris most of the way.

He bought them some breakfast before they set out. Climbing off the ship, he looked over at the beaming Iris.

Again, she was looking around the beautiful city of Baticul, admiring the sights. When she saw him looking at her, she blushed and began scowling, turning away from him.

"When we reach the top, I'll give you a few gald to get some clothes." He looked her up and down.

"You _do _need them."

She snarled at him, but didn't respond. _At least I'll have some time to myself. _He thought.

They stepped into the elevator in front of them.

The ride up was awkward, and they barely looked at one-another.

When the elevator binged open, she turned towards him.

"What?" He scoffed.

"You said you'd give me gald."

"I didn't say right now."

She pouted at him, her lips turning into a pout.

"And by the way, how am I supposed to get clothes if my hands are hand-cuffed?"

Okay. She made a fair point, but Sync hated admitting it. So, he just looked blankly at her and said,

"Turn around."

She beamed. When he let them fall to the ground, she began walking away, but he grabbed her hand.

"Wait." He pulled her next to him and placed a hand on her arm. When he pulled it away, a glowing curse slot lay on her arm.

"What's this?" She asked him, clearly mad.

"Curse slot. If you get to far away, and I can't find you, then I'll activate it. And I don't think that either you, or the others around you will enjoy watching your deepest desires come out."

He smirked.

She scowled.

"Fine." She jerked her hand away, pulling down the hem of her patterned skirt and playing with the necklace that dangled off her neck.

"Meet here in an hour, precise." He ordered. "I'll be around the city for now."

When Sync walked away, I watched him go.

I looked down at the glowing pattern on my skin. _Was he really serious when he said it would bring out my deepest desires? _I thought to myself.

I scowled.

This was great. Now I felt like a dog tied to a leash.

"I might as well go into one of the stores."

I turned the corner, but stopped in my tracks and hid.

_What's Van doing here? Who are those people with him? I hope he knows that Sync and I are here…._

"Fon Master Ion and Anise aren't here." A man in a blue uniform said, pushing up his glasses. He looked familiar, but I couldn't find the name.

"I don't see princess Natalia around either." A blonde around his twenties commented. He looked around, and I ducked behind a corner before his blue eyes could spot me. I kept listening to their conversation as they stood in front of the Desert Rain.

"Who cares about that? We've already said goodbye, so let's go and end this quickly, right master?" An impatient red head said, turning to Van.

I raised my eyebrow.

_Master,_ huh? Well this sparked my attention. Van smiled, and turned to the man in the blue uniform.

"So, how do you plan on going to Akzeriuth?" he asked the man.

"Oh yes, about that…. It seems the Oracle Ships are blocking the Central Ocean. It's probably the Grand Maestro faction trying to interfere."

"Colonel." A woman with copper-brown hair similar to van's looked to the colonel. She held a staff in her hand, and seemed very composed.

"Well, it's the truth. Well, it's still unconfirmed whether it really is the Grand Maestro Faction." The _colonel _replied. How had I not noticed he was of high status?

"So what should we do?" The red head asked, swinging his arm to the side.

"Let's send a decoy ship and head to Chesedonia by land." The colonel said.

"The Rotelro Sea near Chesedonia is under Malkuth's control." The blonde agreed.

"Yes, if we manage to reach Chesedonia, we could then go to Kaitzur by ship." The colonel finished.

Wait, weren't Sync and I going to Chesedonia?

"Then let us do that." Van agreed. "I will take the decoy ship."

"What?" the red head said, apparently surprised. The woman glanced at him, but didn't say anything.

"It has been officially announced that I would join the rescue party to Akzeriuth, hasn't it?"

"Yes." The colonel nodded.

"Wait a minute master, that would mean…" The redhead started, but Van stopped him.

"It would make it more believable if the saw me embark." Van conveyed.

"I see." The blonde stepped away from the brick wall. "They'd be less likely to watch the land route." He turned to the Colonel.

"What do you think?"

"Very well then. Please do." He said to van.

"No way! Master…" The red head began again.

"Luke!" Van told him. _Ah! So that was the red heads name! Now I wouldn't have to call him redhead._

"All right." Luke finally agreed. Van began walking away from the group, down the sunny, brick path. When he was a little ways away, the Colonel turned to the others.

"I will inform the king of our decision. Please wait for me in the square below." He told them. He then walked away.

_This information is too perfect! _I smirked. I walked away, looking around to see if Sync were somewhere. Maybe I would tell him, maybe I wouldn't.

I was walking towards the plaza below us, when I accidently ran into a girl who looked my age. She had curly brown hair that she had pulled into two pigtails, and a small, stuffed cat was wrapped around her neck.

"Oof!" When we collided, we fell onto the brick.

"I'm sorry!" I blurted. I stood up, brushed off my skirt, and held out a hand. Hey, I at least had some decency! She also seemed nice.

I looked at her cute outfit and realized,

"Aren't you Fon Master Ion's guardian?" I asked her quizzically.

"Yes! That's why I'm running so fast!" She shouted, clearly panicked "I woke up, and I couldn't find him! I searched everywhere!"

"Oh. May I help?" I asked her.

"I guess, but right now I need to get to my friends! I have to tell them what has happened!" She panicked.

"I-I'll come with you then." I stammered. At this point, I didn't care what Sync said, threat or no threat.

So, the girl just grabbed my hand and dragged me along behind her, her pink vest fluttering out behind her. Man, this girl was fast! I stumbled many times as we dashed past onlookers through the beautiful and elegant streets.

Finally, we came to a stop near the edge of the plaza. I realized that the people I had seen earlier were standing there. Well, minus the Colonel.

She dropped my hand and walked towards the one named Luke.

"Mister Luke!~" She chorused sadly and hugged him.

"A-Anise! What's wrong?" Luke asked. The blonde man looked towards me.

"Anise, who is this?" He asked her, hand on his sword hilt.

"What is your name, anyways?" She looked at me.

"Iris." I told them. She looked towards them and frowned.

"That's not important right now!"

"What is it then?" The woman asked.

"It's terrible! Master Ion has disappeared!" She said pitifully.

"Fon Master Ion?" I asked her.

"Yes! When I woke up, his bed was already empty!" She explained. They all looked shocked.

"I've heard that two guards have disappeared, as well." I heard a voice say. I turned around. The Colonel was striding towards us.

"Mohs is trying to keep this quite so as to avoid causing panic." He told the group.

"I searched the whole city for him, but I couldn't find him anywhere!" Anise replied, worried.

"Could it be… the God-Generals?" Luke suggested.

"I'm afraid so." The Colonel answered.

_Is that why we stopped here? _I wondered to myself. But before I could say anything, Colonel said,

"And if that's the case, then they are probably already outside the city."

"Then let's go after them!" Luke exclaimed.

"That would be foolish." Colonel replied.

"Why?"

"Take a look." Colonel pointed his head towards over the balcony. We all peered over the balcony.

"Oracle Knights?" Luke said.

Oh crap. What if they saw me? I tried to duck my head so that they wouldn't see. The others barely noticed my strange reaction.

The oracle knights were at the beginning of the bridge where the trail out led. I saw a large, grey tank that was surrounded by silver-cloaked soldiers.

"If the God-Generals are on the move, traveling by land could prove difficult too." The blonde man said.

"So what?" Luke snapped. "We could just beat them up and go. I looked at him.

"You aren't the smartest one of the group are you?" I told him. A few chuckled, but he just scowled and said,

"Hey!" He snapped.

The woman with the staff sighed.

"Don't you get it?"

Luke looked at her. So did I.

"Get what?"

"If we made matters worse, there would be no point in using a decoy." She told him.

"Hey! Don't say so much in front of her!" Luke snapped.

"It's okay. I won't tell anyone." I smiled. I had decided against telling Sync after all. It would be fun, like my own little secret. Anise smiled back at me.

"If only we could leave the city without the enemy noticing us…." The colonel said, looking deep in thought and placing a hand on his chin.

"Well about that….. I have an idea." Everyone looked to him. He smiled.

"Follow me." He began walking away.

"Where are we going?" Anise asked cheerfully.

"I know a way out of the city." He said. I hung back and watched them go. They stopped a little ways away and turned back to me.

"We're leaving now, Iris. But…. Would you like to come with us?" he asked.

"I agree that would be wise, seeing we shared so much information in front of her." Jade agreed, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"Wait, you're asking _her _to come along?" Luke exclaimed.

"Be quite Luke." The woman told him.

"I-I'm sorry. I can't. I really want to, but the person who is watching over me…" My mind flashed back to Sync threatening me. "Let's just say they are extremely over-protective."

"Okay." The blonde said. He smiled. "Well, I hope we see you around again." He waved goodbye.

"Bye, Iris~!" Anise yelled cheerfully. They then walked away. I watched as they went.

_Stupid curse slot and its dumb powers! _I thought in my head. I looked back towards them.

"I hope we meet again, too." I said, although I knew they couldn't hear me.


	5. So Cold

**Two chapters in one day! I'm so proud! This is probably all I will be doing for today and tomorrow, but I'll be updating soon! Enjoy! **

When Iris finally met back up with Sync, he didn't even bother to be mad.

He just grabbed her wrist and dragged her behind him through the streets, ignoring the looks from the passerby's, and the pouts and complaints coming from her.

_We need to get on the Tartarus, _was his only thought. He dragged her through the streets, down the path, and all the way outside until a large, magnificent ship came into view.

"Whoa…." He heard Iris mutter. He didn't stop and let her admire the view this time; he only dragged her right up the stairway and inside.

"You can let go of me now!" She snapped. He let her wrist fall to her side, and finally turned around to face her. He crossed his arms across his chest and scowled at her.

"Why don't you have new clothes on?" He demanded. "Don't tell me you went ahead and threw the coins into a fountain or something."

"I just got detoured, that's all." She growled at him.

"Whatever." He turned back around and marched down the hallway. Without him looking, she stuck her tongue out at him.

Close call.

She snapped it back in when he turned towards her. He had regained the emotionless look.

"Are you coming?" He asked her.

"I hate you." She muttered.

"Likewise." He shot back. He proceeded down the Fonstone-lit hall and marched into one of the rooms.

"isn't that somebody's-" She began, but he pushed the door open anyways. There was no-one inside, so he store over to the beds, plopping his and her satchels onto the floor.

"Stay here. I need to go do something." He told her.

"Why should I-" But he had already closed the door behind him. She huffed. _That boy is always in such a rush! _

Outside, the door, Sync waved a hand across it, sealing her inside. _That should keep her here._ Then he marched down the hall and up the stairs to the captain's quarters.

On the other side of the door way, I was still standing, rooted to the ground where he had ditched me.

"That boy is so…. So….. Urgh!" I fumed. I collapsed onto the bed and looked up at the silver ceiling for a while. The Fonstone lamps shone brightly, and I looked around at the covers. They were blue.

Thank goodness.

I didn't think I could stand anymore green.

I thought back to the nice group of people I met in Baticul. They seemed interesting. I would much rather help them rescue Fon Master Ion than be stuck with Sync the Grumpy.

Suddenly, my stomach growled. I hadn't realized I was so hungry.

"I better get some food. I'm sure they have some on this ship, or whatever it is." I stood up and walked over to the door.

I turned the knob and pulled. It wouldn't budge. I pulled again, only harder.

I tried over and over, but it wouldn't budge.

I even tried kicking it.

Finally, I scanned my eyes around the room for anything that would make a durable lock pick.

_Aha! Perfect! _I smiled as I looked at a small clip. I immediately grabbed it off the table and twisted it into shape. I shoved it into the lock and turned it expertly like I always did.

That failed too.

Then I realized he had put another seal on the door.

He had told me the previous night he had done that while I was sleeping.

Crap. There was no escape. So I walked over to the satchels that were tossed onto the ground.

_He he. He forgot to put a seal on these._ I thought devilishly to myself. I pulled open Sync's. I wrapped my fingers around the first thing my fingers wrapped around. I yanked it out.

_Whoa. Another one? _I said, holding the golden covering in front of my face. I ran my fingers across the swirls. It looked nice, if it weren't so beakish.

I slipped it back inside and felt around again. I produced some apple gels and a few bottles of the same liquid he had applied on me when Legretta shot me.

I didn't want to open that again. I also felt a few spare pieces of clothing, and finally, my hands clasped a small, tiny package. I brought it out and examined the label.

Apparently, he had gone on some shopping errand. I smiled. I could make something out of this. I felt around in one of the front pockets, and felt my finger get sliced by something sharp.

"Ouch!" I yanked my hand back, then opened it further and peered inside. A small knife only slightly bigger than a letter opener sat in the space. I grabbed it up and grinned.

I brought the small package of food over to the wooden countertop.

I didn't care if the table got dirty.

I found a cloth and washed the table off with water from the sink. (I know, A sink here, right?)

Then I began cooking.

I made a small cheese, sausage, and veggie dish, which I admit I was proud of myself for making, especially with no fire.

When I finished making my food, I sat down and admired my work. I was about to eat, but I decided against it. I couldn't wait to show Sync my accomplishment…..

When Sync finally unlocked the seal on the door and entered the room, I felt like I was ready to throw up. The downpour of rain outside didn't help my mood.

I had been waiting forever to show him my work.

He just looked at me.

"What the hell happened to you?"

I managed to grunt out a faint,

"Hungry."

He looked at the counter where the platter of food I made was resting. I hid my face behind my violet bangs to cover my greenish tinge.

"What are you doing? There's food right there." He gestured, still no sympathy. I swear, that boy is a freaking _statue _when it comes to other living beings.

"I know… I made it…." I weakly muttered.

"Then why aren't you eating?" he frowned.

I chuckled softly and smiled.

"I guess I just wanted to show you… and watch your face as I bragged." I explained in a soft voice I rarely ever used.

He lessened his frown.

"That didn't turn out exactly as you planned, did it?" He asked.

"I don't care…." I muttered faintly. I tried standing up, but fell to my knees.

Sync's face seemed emotionless, but that was the first time I had seen his features smooth out like that. He grabbed my arm and helped me up. I clutched my stomach. I wanted to throw up so badly.

"Now don't go puking on me." He said, proving he wasn't completely gone. He sat me down in my chair and pointed to the food.

"Eat. Now." I looked at him. He sighed. _I can't have her in this condition when we reach the Zao Ruins tomorrow. _He thought.

"Fine. It's very nice. Now eat." He told me. I smiled a bit, then gently began to eat my food. Slowly, the pain in my stomach began to fade.

Suddenly, there was a tiny noise outside the window.

"Sync! Open up!" A male voice shouted. I looked out the window. I spotted a red head of hair. _Is that….. Luke? _I wondered. No. This man was wearing a grey tunic, and he was a holding a young boy with green hair. Wait. Green hair? Why did that boy outside the window also have green hair?

I turned from the boy outside, to the one standing next to me. Sync was clenching his fists, and he was gritting his teeth.

"Open up!" I heard the voice call again. Sync walked out of the room and up metal stairs. Finally, he stopped in front of a door. He pulled down a lever and the doorway opened. Next thing I knew, a golden stairway was sliding down to the red head.

I heard someone call out into the rain. I faintly heard the name 'Ion.'

Wait, the boy that the red head was holding was…. _Fon Master Ion_?! Suddenly a group of familiar looking faces appeared. I saw the bronze-grey haired woman, Luke, Anise, the blonde man, the Colonel, and Princess Natalia.

Wait. Why was _Princess Natalia _here? I saw Luke gasp. He looked as If he had just seen a ghost. I heard the red head on the steps call out something, then he began walking up the stairs.

I ducked inside before the others could recognize me, even if the rain hid me well. Finally, they shouted one last word, and the door shut behind Ion.

When the red head and Ion turned around, I gasped. The man had the same face as…..

"Oh. It's _you._" He growled. I frowned. I looked at the shivering Ion in the man's hand.

"Asch. Is everything good?" Sync asked.

"Yes." Asch nodded. Then he began walking down the hallway, steering Ion into one of the rooms and shutting it behind him.

"W-why is Fon Master Ion here?" I asked turning towards Sync.

"None of your business." He growled. Then he marched to our room and slammed the door behind him. I stood there for a while. Then finally, I went in front of the room where Asch and Ion had disappeared. I couldn't make out what they were hearing.

So I entered the room.

Once inside, I saw Sync climbing under the covers. I looked at the monotonous look on his face.

"I…. I'm sorry if I made you mad." I mumbled. But I didn't let him hear me, so I climbed under the covers.

In the middle of the night, Iris woke up ice cold. Her whole body was shivering. She pulled the covers over her shoulders, but that didn't help.

Finally, she grew so cold, she stood up. She looked in the mirror.

It was normal to look ghostly in the dark, but she looked like the whitest cloud. She was shivering so much she was afraid she would collapse any moment.

"S-Sync…." She stuttered. She touched his cheek gently. He jerked his head back and tilted his head to the side. He looked at her.

"What were you…." He took in her tiny, pale figure. _She looks so pale. _ He thought.

"What happened?" He asked.

"S-s-so c-c-cold…." She shivered. He bolted out of bed and grabbed her shoulders.

Crap. She was literally a human popsicle.

He touched her forehead. That was ice to. What could have happened? He wondered.

It hit him.

The food.

"Iris. Where exactly did you get the ingredients to make the food you ate?" He asked her.

She lifted a shaking hand and pointed to the crumpled up bag.

"You idiot!" He scowled. He grabbed the bag and looked for the item he had bought. But the light shimmering blue fruit was gone.

"There was an ice-berry in here! Those things are deadly poisonous!" He shouted. He dashed over to his satchel. He could have sworn he had something in here to counter act frost…..

His gloved hand clasped around a fiery-orange apple.

"Here. Eat this." He held it in front of her blue lips. She gently took a bite. Spiciness flared in her mouth, but it faded away. She slowly lifted her shivering fingers. He grabbed them, and felt warmth slowly coming back into them.

"There. It will take a while, but the cold will die down." He said softly. Okay, he was definitely being nice to her.

She let out a weak laugh.

"F-first time y-y-you have b-been this n-n-nice to me…." She told him. He scowled, but didn't reply.

"Get back to sleep." He told her. She climbed under the covers slowly and sunk into the pillow, covering her cheeks with her hair.

"Th-thanks…" She thanked him. He just turned around and fell asleep.


	6. What Exactly Happened Last Night?

**Okay, so I said that the last chapter would be my final chapter for the day, but I got so carried away that I (accidently?) wrote this. I hope you enjoy! Let me know how it is so far! (Guest and everyone enjoy!)**

Sync had never planned this.

Nor had he wanted to do this.

But at the time, it was the only thing that could be done.

Iris had been so cold that night; so pale, that he actually felt scared. He had already mentally kicked himself for feeling that way.

But now _this_; this was a whole different level.

When Iris went to sleep again, she was still freezing cold. The fire apple still needed to be given time to contradict the poison of the frost berry. So for the first few moments, he just lay there, looking up at the ceiling.

Then he heard her small voice whisper,

"Sync… can you lay next to me? I'm cold."

Now _that_ freaked him out.

She hated him, and he hated her also. So he was extremely nervous when she asked him that. But when he looked at her again, saw her still pale, frozen face, his body just reacted.

_Why does she always get sick, tired, or exhausted before we go somewhere important?_ He wondered. He was annoyed with how fragile she was.

So his body reacted, and he pushed himself up off his bed. He crossed to her side and climbed in bed, her rolling so that their backs were just inches apart.

"Thanks….." She said, weakly.

He hated how uncomfortable this made him feel.

Iris' head still felt frozen, but at least she felt warm.

Then she realized why.

She remembered Sync climbing into her bed to keep her warm, but they had apparently shifted their positions dramatically overnight. She had wound her way into his arms in a search for warmth, hands held in front of her face, and he had his arm gently wrapped around her in turn.

However, they both didn't realize they were in this awkward position.

Iris pressed her face into the warmth and felt a movement. But she didn't want to move. She was way too comfortable, and she didn't know why. She held the front of his coat in her two hands like a child holds a doll.

However, Sync woke up before her. He noticed that he had his arm around her, and his first reaction was to yank it back and leap out of the bed and scream, _what the hell?! _

But instead, he forced himself to hold still. He felt her move closer and bury her face in his chest. He felt his face heat up.

He remembered laying down to keep her from freezing to death, but he had no idea how they had wound up this way. She was clutching the front of his coat in a childish manner, and she was smiling in her sleep. He smirked.

He would never let her live this down when she woke up.

Then it was Iris' turn to wake up.

Her eyes fluttered open, and she noticed she was staring into a greenish-black chest. She felt her face heat up. She realized that her front hands were curled around the front of his cloak, holding the fabric.

She released it and began blushing like crazy.

She lifted her face upwards, checking to see if he was awake. He was. And he was staring at her. She felt so awkward, but relieved when he said, with that usual smirk of his,

"I will _never_ let you live this down."

She frowned, then pushed his chest.

And by pushed, it was more like shoved.

He fell out of her bed in a flutter of covers and sheets, until he was lying on the ground. She sat on her knees, looked hi in the eye, and told him with a huff,

"Oh, grow up."

I decided that I wanted to make breakfast.

I had a good time yesterday. But as I reached for the bag of ingredients, Sync slapped my hand away.

"No you don't. Don't you remember last night." He smirked.

"Well, you were the one who forced me to eat it, so it wasn't entirely my fault!" I retorted.

"You were the one who made it in the first place without telling me!"

"How could I! You locked me in!"

"I didn't want you to run away!"

"How did you know that I would?!" I came back. Finally he crossed his arms and scowled.

"I'm going to the mess hall for some food. Join me or don't." Then he walked out and slammed the door behind him.

Again.

Thank goodness he didn't lock the door on me again, or that time I would have busted the door down. But instead of following him, I opened the door and walked over to Fon Master Ion's quarters. I knocked.

"Fon Master Ion?" I asked gently. "Are you in there?"

I heard a soft voice reply.

"Yes."

I glanced down the corridor to make sure no one else was coming this way.

"May I come in, or is the door locked?" I whispered.

"You can come in." He replied. I grabbed the knob and twisted. The Fon Master was standing by one of the chairs at the table, holding a forked golden staff.

"Hello." I said, smiling. He gave off a calming, warming aura, and it was soothing to stand around him.

"Hello." He replied. "I haven't seen you before. Did you just join the Oracle Knights?" He asked me.

"No. Van caught me one day, and now I'm stuck with Sync the grumpy." I told him, rolling my eyes.

"So you're not with the Oracle Knights?" He asked curiously, tilting his head to the side.

"Technically, no." I responded. His mood seemed to brighten.

"I'm Ion." He told me, stretching out a hand. I looked at it for a moment. He laughed softly.

"It's okay." He told me soothingly. I took his hand gently and shook it.

"I'm Iris. Nice to meet you, Fon Master." I introduced. I bowed gently. I knew my manners, thankfully.

"So you know of me. Well then, now that introductions are done, it's nice to meet you, Iris!" he told me, smiling brightly.

"Nice to meet you too, Fon Master Ion." I replied/

"Please, call me Ion." He nodded. I smiled.

"Well, so what brings you here? Why was that Asch person dragging you here?" I asked curiously.

"I really don't know, but….." he began explaining what he thought to me. I soon found myself in a deep and pleasant conversation with him, but I still had an uneasy feeling that something not good was going to happen to Ion, my new friend.

Sync was irritated.

He was also slightly confused.

He had expected Iris to show up in the mess hall, ready to tease him or scowl at him, but instead, he couldn't find her anywhere.

But when he was walking down the hallway to their room, he heard voices and laughter drifting from Ion's room. He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

Now Iris had met that idiot of a….

_No_. He stopped himself there. _I don't care. She chooses who she wants to associate with. _

But he still began opening the door.

He looked at them in the doorway, both of them smiling. But then her face fell. And she looked coldly over Ion's shoulder at Sync.

"Iris? What's wrong?" ion asked, worried.

"I have to go now." She muttered apologetically to Ion, and stood up out of the chair. She tossed one last smile over her shoulder.

"See you later, Ion." Then walked out of the room. Ion looked at Sync in the doorway.

"Be good to her, Sync. She may be tough, but she's a nice person." Ion said, smiling at him.

Sync just frowned and closed the door loudly. Iris stood in front of him, her arms crossed across her chest. She was scowling.

"Why do you always have to interrupt every cherished moment of my life?" She huffed, fiddling with the amulet around her neck like she always did.

"I would hardly call that cherished." He told her. Then he walked away.

**Whoa. That's a lot to take in.**

**Ion and Iris have finally met, and there seems to be something going on in Sync's mind.**

**Why does Iris feel a sense of dread, and how will she react to Sync's strange behavior.**


	7. Which Nest Does the Bird Leave?

"The Zao Ruins!" I heard a voice exclaim.

I looked out the window in my cabin. A pile of pillars and rubble in front of an opening came into view. It must have been a magnificent place. The golden sand gleamed in the sun, making flecks of light fall on the white pillars. I sighed.

Down the hallway, I heard Ion's door open, and I looked out from my door.

Asch and Sync had him by the arms, and were taking him outside. They had stepped into the warmth before I even had a chance to call out.

_I got to get out there. _I told myself.

I stepped into the cool, breezy hallway and made my way up the metallic stairs, my knee-high boots clanging on the steps. When I stepped into the control room, I looked at the Oracle Knights. Their fingers were flying over the buttons as they looked at the screens.

"Perfect." I smirked. They must have the controls to open the door.

"Hey!" I called out. "I need someone to open the door for me!"

They ignored me, typing away on their keyboards.

"Hey! _Open the door!_" I yelled.

They still ignored me. I felt like a child. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore.

"Hey! You dumb idiots! Open the stupid door!" That caught some attention.

One of the knights stepped close to me and sneered, looking me up and down.

"Why should we open the door for _you_?" He snarled. He drew out the 'you' in a very annoying way. The man in front of me gestured to three others with his gloved hand.

"Take her to the jail room. She isn't supposed to be here."

_Jail Room?! There is no way freaking way they are locking me up again! _My brain screamed. The three Knights clad in sliver rushed over to me, ready to snatch me and pin my arms behind my back.

I smirked. This was an easy game.

I side-stepped the first and kicked him in the back, sending him flying into one of his companions. The third launched himself at me while the other two stood up. I grabbed his arm and twisted it, swinging him into the wall, which knocked him out cold.

The other two leaped at me at the same time, grabbing my arms. But I just smiled and flipped them over, making sure they landed on the ground really hard.

I drew a sword from one of the groaning men and pointed it at the grey Knight who had asked them to take me.

"I'll be leaving now, thank you very much."

Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

Once Iris had stepped outside (Sword still in hand, of course) she started directly towards the Ruins.

_What are they planning to do with Ion?! _She wondered. She was already in a bad mood, and if she saw Ion get hurt, she was afraid she would turn into a rage monster.

She stepped into the dark opening, peering inside the dark. _Here goes nothing. _She thought, than started down the staircase.

When inside the ruins, she navigated the dark, creepy tunnels, thanking her luck for not encountering any monsters so far.

"They always say these ruins are packed with monsters, but I guess that was just a lie."

But she shouldn't have said that so soon.

When she turned around the corner, she saw a large, growling Liger. It snarled loudly at her, and tensed its muscles, fangs bared.

"Oh no you don't." She said. She leaped through the air, bringing her sword down on the middle of the Liger. It crumpled to a heap on the floor, then began disintegrating to ash. She didn't look back, but strode forwards.

For the next thirty minutes, she wandered through the pitch-black tunnels, finding only the occasional few monsters.

Finally, through the maze of pathways, she saw a dim light coming from not too far away.

She drew closer, crouching down in the shadows of the rubble, and observed.

Ion was standing in front of a large, weird object, and he was saying words she couldn't understand. Asch stood next to him. Iris scowled in the shadows. _What are they doing to him?! _

She was about to step out when all of the sudden she heard a familiar voice call out.

"Master Ion!" She heard. She looked to the area before the weird wall. She saw Anise standing there, surrounded by her friends. She had a worried but determined look on her face.

She then realized that Sync was gone.

_Where is he? _ She scanned the dark but couldn't find him anywhere.

"Asch!" She heard Luke call. His voice resonated across the cavern. "Who the hell are you?!What are you trying to do?!"

"That dreck…" She heard Asch mutter.

"Asch! Give Master Ion back to us!" She heard Anise demand. She ran towards the two, when all of the sudden Sync appeared before her.

"Hold it." He stated, arms across his chest.

"Sync!" Anise gasped. With all her might, Iris held herself back from running out there and joining Anise, but she held still.

Footsteps sounded near her, and then suddenly Largo appeared.

"Well, well, Largo the Black Lion. So you're still alive?" The colonel said.

_Still alive? _Iris wondered.

"As if I could have been killed by a wound like that, Jade the Necromancer." Largo replied in a rough voice.

Iris gasped silently. _Jade the Necromancer?! I knew I recognized him somehow! _

"Out of the way you bastards!" Luke yelled. He drew his sword. "I don't have time to waste on you!"

"This should be amusing. Show me how you've grown since last saw you cowering on the Tartarus." Largo chuckled.

_Last….. saw him on… did they steal the Tartarus? _Iris realized.

"Shut up!" Luke yelled. He and the blonde dashed towards Largo. Largo leaped into the air, and Sync dashed forward.

"So you can actually attack now, huh?" Largo said to Luke as he blocked a blow of Luke's blade.

"Don't make fun of me!" Luke replied. Then Iris couldn't take it. As she saw both sides fighting, she knew she would have to make a choice. So Iris ran out from behind the rubble. Luckily, no one saw her on either side.

Sync and guy were battling it out, and Largo and Luke were fighting also. Iris dashed quickly into the middle, and saw Sync smirk at guy. She saw Jade, Luke and Anise fighting Largo. Luke, Jade and Largo were all bantering back and forth, then Anise screamed,

"Largo, you jerk!" Then launched towards him. When he sent her flying through the air, something inside Iris snapped, and she stepped next to Jade. Tear and Natalia had joined the fight against Sync now, and they weren't doing so well.

"Iris? What are you-" Jade began, but she only gave him a small smile. She saw Sync blaze a streak of light towards the blonde, then saw something flash on the blondes arm. Sync smirked.

Then Iris used a Fonic Arte. When she began, Sync saw her, and a quick look of shock blazed on his face before he returned to the fighting.

_O' great almighty gods of the sky…._

A few of the group looked at her.

_I ask you to lend me your power to blaze through thy foes!_

Now Luke had knocked Sync back and Asch had joined the fight.

_Heavenly Sword!_

Iris yelled out, her cry echoing everywhere. Suddenly, a blazing light shone across the battle. Above them, a giant, sharp blade was coming, aiming, right towards Largo. It had wisps of light curling off the edges, and it was coming closer and closer.

Sync had turned to Iris. His face was a mix of a look of shock and a scowl.

"What the hell?!" she heard Luke cry.

Suddenly, it felt as if all energy had faded from Iris' body. She fell to her knees, using the blade as support. Her hands were shaking. As a matter of fact, her whole body was shaking.

She knew she had used a powerful Arte.

She knew it would sap her dry.

But she didn't think twice about how weak it made her feel. Iris saw the blade crash into Largo. He cried out, but he didn't fall like she had wanted him to.

She raised her shaking head, and saw a beam of light rise to the ceiling where Luke and Asch were battling. It struck, and then the cavern began rumbling.

Iris knew Jade and the others were too far away. They would never reach her in time. She saw them make their way towards me.

"No! Run!" She yelled with the very last ounce of strength she had in her. She fell to the ground. Her now shaking hands were the only support she had left, and they were supported by her quaking knees.

She looked up and saw Sync and Asch running. Sync suddenly stopped and looked my direction. Iris heard footsteps, then suddenly hands were helping her stand, picking me up, and running. She looked up a little, and saw the grey-bearded Largo carrying her as they ran.

"So that was Princess Natalia, huh? It must be fate." Iris heard Sync say.

Largo kept silent.

"What do you have to do with Natalia?" Iris heard Asch ask.

"It's a thing of the past. I've forgotten." The burly man responded. Iris wanted to say something, but she couldn't.

"We don't need to know each other past's. You should know that better than anyone," Sync said, turning to Asch. "You the leftover ashes of the Sacred Flame."

They were silent after that.

_Sacred flame? What's that? _Iris thought. But she was so weak.

Before she passed out, one last thought shot through her head.

_I hope they're all okay. _


	8. Why Does it happen at This Time of Night

_All I could feel was cold. Cold, cold, cold._

_And I didn't know what to do. Bars kept me inside a cramped cell, and I was huddled in the corner. Drops of water landed on my head and arms, and I shivered._

"_Make it stop…. Please, make it stop…" I heard a voice whimper._

"_Who's there?" I raised my head. I looked to the corner across from me and saw a small, huddled figure. She was whimpering and had her arms crossed over her legs._

"_Hello? Who are you?" I asked the girl. She looked up._

"_You…. You look just like me!" She gasped. We both had the same emerald green hair, Jade eyes, bangs, and pieces of hair on either side of our faces. Our hair was even the same length; down to our waist._

"_Y-you too!" I marveled._

"_I don't know what happened. I just remember people dragging me off…."The girl who looked like me said._

"_Same here. I was just sitting on a weird table, and then, I was here."_

"_Do you have a name?" The girl asked me._

"_No. Do you?"_

"_No." She told me, looking down into her knees. We both only wore pitiful scraps of clothing that clung to out shivering bodies._

"_Why don't we name ourselves?" I suggested. She looked at me for a moment than nodded her head. I began to speak, but then suddenly a loud, slamming noise sounded and a door opened which sent light pouring into our cell._

"_We have a new friend for you." A rough voice sneered, and I saw a white-cloaked soldier toss another girl in._

_She dashed to the door, but it clanged shut in her face._

"_You moron! I'm another person here!" She screamed at the man. The man just turned his back, and marched away._

"_You rotten scrap of flesh! You should be grateful that you three have words in your dirty minds that were implanted there." The man snarled before slamming the door._

_The girl turned towards me and the other girl on the floor._

"_How did we get here?" She demanded._

"_I don't know, so don't ask me." I told her._

"_We were just about to pick names for ourselves before the guard interrupted us, so if you don't start being more nice, we could just call you grumpy instead." _

_The girl in the corner laughed a little. The one by the door waved her hand at us and turned around. She also had the same face as us._

"_Whatever."_

"_Anyways….. I want to be called… Iris." I heard myself say._

"_I want Harmony." The girl in the corner smiled. We looked at her._

"_What?"_

"_I want…. Lela." The girl by the door said._

"_Okay. That's settled. But how will we be able to tell the difference?" I stated. Lela grabbed something, I couldn't see what, then reached to the back of her head. I couldn't see any distinct details, but I heard a tiny sound of hair breaking, and then she held a clump of hair in her hand. _

_Lela now sported a messy sort of bob._

"_There. Now you know I'm Lela."_

_Harmony grabbed a piece of her rags and tore it into two pieces. She braided her hair into two on either side and tied the ends with the strips of cloth._

"_Now you know that I'm Harmony." Harmony smiled. I felt compelled to do something, so I took one strip of my hair and braided it, so there was one small braid in my long locks._

"_Now, I'm Iris. I like my hair too much to cut it."_

_Harmony laughed and Lela smiled. I already knew I was going to be great friends with these girls._

Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

I gasped and jolted awake.

My breaths were coming out ragged and coarse, and my shirt clung to my back from the sweat pouring down my neck. I threw the covers off me in a desperate attempt to get rid of the heat. They fluttered to the ground next to me, ghostly in the moonlight.

It was early again, but I didn't have a reason to sleep. How could I? I took in deep breaths and stilled my heavy breathing. Cool air blew in from the open window, and I closed my eyes as the cold washed over me.

"So nice….." I pressed myself against the windowsill and looked out. It appeared we were in Chesedonia, judging from the tents, the palm trees, and the desert. So I just sat there for a moment, gazing out the window, face resting in my hands.

"Up again, huh?" I whipped my head around. It always seemed that I was always with Sync, which I found quite annoying. He was smirking, one hand resting on his knee, the other he rested on. He was looking at me, and I wanted to hide from the moonlight, because right then I felt like the spotlight was shined on me.

My blush kicked in, but I just turned back out the window.

"Yeah. I told you I always wake up this early."

"So you've said." He stood up and walked over to my bed. He sat down, and I could practically feel him staring at the nape of my neck.

"Why is it always at this time of day?" I asked.

"What?"

"Why is it that every time we aren't fighting it's always at this time of day?" I turned to him, a smile on my face. He chuckled a bit to himself.

"Yeah. It's pretty weird."

I tilted my head, and looked at him for a moment. He had a long, vertical scratch on his leg, and it looked really painful.

"When did you get that?" I gestured to the scratch, turning away from the window and leaning towards his leg.

"It's nothing. Just a scratch." He said, jerking his leg away. He flinched a bit, so I could tell it was deep.

"A scratch huh?" I said. I shifted positions so I was bending over his leg again.

"Why does it look so deep?"

"I've had worse. It'll heal." He snapped. I crossed my arms.

"I may have been on this mission with you for only a few days, but I _do _know when you are lying to me." I frowned. I leaned forward and examined his leg, but he pulled it away again.

"Hold still! I may be able to help!" I glowered.

"Why would you care?" He remarked.

"I may not be very fond of you, Asch, and Largo, but I can't have you three getting hurt now. After all, you are my care takers." I came back.

"Whatever." He stood up and winced. Then I couldn't take it anymore.

I grabbed his collar and yanked.

And by _yanked_, I mean more like _tugged._

He fell onto the bed with a loud thud, and I pinned him down with a knee before he could jump back up.

"Hold still!" I sibilated. I pinned down one of his arms and held my hand over his injured leg. A glowing light emanated from my hand and washed over his leg. I watched as the deep scratch mended itself.

"There." I griped. I let go and he pushed himself up.

"You're welcome."

"I didn't ask for your help."

"I didn't ask you too." I huffed.

"You're a seventh fonist?"

"Yeah. What about it?" I crossed my arms again.

"You didn't tell me."

"You didn't need to know."

Sync just sighed and sat on the edge of the bed.

"I'm going to get ready." He told me and pushed himself up. He walked over to the bags and began shoving things inside them. I stood up and walked over to where he stood.

"Let me help."

"I don't need it." He said coldly. I looked at him sternly.

"I'm already up, I have nothing to do, so I'm helping." I addressed him. He just frowned, but he didn't respond. I stepped next to him and helped him pack the bags.

We packed in silence for a while, until he broke the quite.

"What were you dreaming about?" He asked me.

"Y-you….. you were watching me?!" I shrieked. He just smirked and continued what he was doing. I was blushing madly and I hated myself for it.

"I was just dreaming about….. something." I said, not wanting to tell him. He didn't need to know about me just yet. He looked at me seriously.

"Iris, I know you're lying." I turned to him.

"But you can talk about it when you're ready." I relaxed a bit.

"You know Sync? I actually like you better when you're mischievous." I smirked. He frowned. But hen that quickly turned into that usual mischievous grin.

"What makes you think I've gone soft?" He dangled my portion of gald in front of me.

"Hey!" I pouted, reaching for it.

He just smirked and held it up higher.

"Told you I'm not soft."

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	9. Fire in the Heart

**I'm back! **** And better than ever, I must say. I'm pumped up to be back, and I've got to say, I'm really pumped up to finish. I know I may have been rushing the story a bit fast, but I'm slowing it down. There's a lot to fit in… **

**Anyways, I wanted to thank all you guys for the support! You're all so amazing, and I'm glad you like the story! I just wanted to say a few shout outs to those who supported me…..**

**ForsakenProdigy: Thank you! I'm glad you like it, and thank you for the positive review! I really enjoy your story also, and thank you for the compliment.**

**Someone (p.s they call themselves someone): Oh, trust me, you'll know. ;-) I know there are a lot of questions, but that's what keeps the story interesting! Thank you for the good review, and I hope I can appeal when I get more into the story. But don't worry! The questions you seek will be answered very soon…..**

**FadingDreams101: Thank you! Really pumped to write more, and can't wait to hear more from you! **

**Amy: Telling me the mistakes I was making really helped. Now, I know much more about what to do and what not to. Thank you for putting it kindly, and it really helped.**

**And to everyone! Thank you so much for all the tips and pointers! You all fueled my inspiration and empowered me to write. I was on hiatus, but now I'm back, so get ready! This is chapter nine, brought to you from ShopTopGamerGirl!**

Sync awoke to the feel of flaming drops of fire raining down onto his face. He flinched a bit, and gritted his teeth until he realized he wasn't dreaming.

The fire from Mount Zaleho in his eyes faded away until a flickering form of a face came into his peripheral vision. Iris hovered over him, and he felt cool drops of water his under his mask.

"Sync? Sync, wake up! Wake up Bird Boy!" She called. He groaned, and shoved her face away with his hand.

"Shut up. Your voice is even more damn annoying this morning." He snapped coldly. The drops of water ended, and all memory of Mount Zaleho faded away with them. Iris fell back onto her bed, arms crossed in annoyance.

"Jerk." She growled, eyes narrowing. Sync pushed himself up, extending his arms so the bits of skin above his gloves showed.

No burn marks.

He cursed for letting a nightmare get to him so much, but altogether rubbed the spots on his wrists where there once used to be remnants from a traumatic experience. He scowled to himself, and pushed away all thoughts of the volcano.

When he looked up, Iris was watching him, with a mixture combined of tenseness and confusion.

"What's up with you?" She asked.

"Nothing." He growled.

"_Nothing _wouldn't have slapped that look on your face."

"I said nothing." He sibilated. She was really getting on his nerves… more than usual.

"You're gonna' be like this the rest of your life, you know that? A stubborn, cold, emotionless jerk who doesn't bother to ever so much as let himself be human."

"Like you're any better." He snapped. Iris winced, but threw a calm façade over her face.

Sync stood up and grabbed the satchels they had packed from last night. Images of the struggle just to cram all the good flooded into his mind, and he snickered at the memory of Iris trying to shove gald inside it.

"Sadist." She growled, stalking over to her satchel and promptly throwing it over her shoulders.

Iris POV:

Sync's a total jerk brain.

Of course, I already knew that, but even more so then usual. Right when I woke up this morning, he's just, "Oh, my night sucked. Let's back it on Iris!"

Damn Sync.

I just wish he could get another little captive to mouth off to.

He coldly pushed into the hallway, and didn't say so much as "Get out of my way," to me. I narrowed my eyes suspiciously, and he must have caught me looking. Before I could so much as talk, he snapped the cuffs back into place.

"Sync!" I whined. "What are these for?!"

"Measures." He spat, than began to stride down the hallway without another word.

If I had fur, I swear it would have bristled.

"Yeah, smart move! Walk the teen girl out in handcuffs! Sure, it won't attract any attention!" I called to his back. OOOOhhhhh… I would have kicked him in the back if I were close enough.

Grumbling, Iris thought of the dream she had last night.

"Dammit, you stupid memory!" She cursed under her breath. The struggle had been going on for months now, as long as Iris could remember. All she knew was the organization.

_You killed them….. you….. _echoed in her mind. All she'd ever known was fight or flight. Orders pouring in. Money. Death. So many victims… and she hadn't even stopped. Hadn't wondered who these people where, why she had to do it. All she knew was her voice, echoing in her mind…

"_You must. It's your duty, Iris. You were born to kill."_

"Move."

Sync's voice snapped her out of her thoughts, and she realize she had slowed into a turtles pace.

"Alright. Jeez….." She muttered.

_I miss Jalek… _She thought. Images of their first mission together flooded into her mind. He was the spitting image of an older brother….

Suddenly, a flash of fire invaded her thoughts.

"Guh!" She bumbled, and heard Sync take a sharp intake of breath.

"Okay. That's it." He hissed. Suddenly, she was off the ground. Something hard landed on her abdomen, and she slumped over it like a doll. She was moving faster….

"Syyyyynnnccc!" She screeched. "Put me down!"

"Quit your damn whining!" He spat harshly. His ears rang from her shriek, and he winced as she kneed his chest. Without a thought, he slapped some gald on the counter of the inn, carelessly brushing off the disturbed looks the customers gave him, and began heading to the door.

A few coupled and people at the desk seemed shocked, and were picking up their gald as they hurried to leave the building.

Outside, the heat hit them like a wave. Largo and Asch stood out front, faces blank. Largo's expression twisted into what one would consider a smirk, as he took in the sight.

"Dammit, stop struggling!" Sync yelled. He finally threw Iris off his shoulder and onto the ground, a scowl on his face.

"Owww!" Iris whined, rubbing her bottom. "Great, now my clothes are all dirty!"

"I don't care." Sync snapped, and stalked off. Without hesitation, Asch gave her a glare before walking off at a brisk pace also. Largo picked her up once more in a iron grip, but holding her in a more comfortable position.

Up ahead, Asch looked back and scowled at the small girl slung over the big man's shoulder.

"I see no reason why Van needs to keep her alive." He stated emotionlessly. His crimson waves fell over his shoulders as he twisted back around to look at a scowling Sync.

"Neither do I." He growled.

"You seem even worse than usual." Asch pointed out stoically, earning a sharp glare.

"Arietta's at Kaitzur now. Van sent her ahead when we left." Asch stated. Iris glanced wistfully at them.

_Kaitzur? Oh, great. More ships. Just makes my day, doesn't it? _She thought grudgingly. _Now I get to meet bubblegum girl one on one. Joy._

Largo's big hand re-adjusted the menacing Scythe held in his other hand, the blade passing inches from Iris' face. The crowded streets quickly moved aside when they noticed the God-Generals approach, rough whispers and harsh stares from Vendors flooded their ears and eyes.

"You sure are popular, aren't you?" Iris voiced sarcastically. Largo's mouth twitched, and he seemed to be frowning and chuckling at the same time.

_What kind of freaking sadistic physcopath's am I with? _

Despite the stares from on-goers and bustled streets, the foursome made it to the port; A direct sail to Kaitzur. As the ship began to set sail, Iris' thoughts wandered to that of her home.

Jalek's POV:

The cold floor was relaxing on Jalek's aching palms.

Saber tooth and Gem had been hammering with questions about Iris for hours now, and he just didn't know what to say.

She'd been gone for days now.

It seems like months since she'd been around. Every day is torture, what with one of their best only to be assumed as caught or dead, though he'd prefer to steer to the first option. Every time someone mentions her name, Jalek gets a sick twisting feeling in my gut. Each question thrown at him brings him closer and closer to abandoning the organization completely.

Gem fixes me with her cold-hearted gaze, and he only partially hears her words.

"…gone. Do you know what might have caused this? Do you?"

"No. I have no idea where she is, or what might have happened."

The words taste dry in his mouth.

The shining metallic floors show him his reflection. His brown hair is mussed, and sea-blue eyes stare back at him quizzically. "Who are you?" He murmurs in a low voice.

Jalek lifts his head to gaze at Saber Tooth. His scar stares back at him, and Jalek swallows under the intensity of his gaze.

"You are done here. There is no more use to talk of this matter with you anymore. Iris is gone, and that is all we know." Saber Tooth states in a hoarse voice. The dark room lights up as he shifts his arm into the light, exposing his metal and clawed hand.

A brick hits Jalek.

_She's gone? She's truly gone? _

Gem's eyes lock onto him, and he does everything he can to tear himself away from her hypnotic bronze gaze. With a sigh, she waves a hand at Jalek, and he stands up. The room is closing in on him, and Iris' last words before vanishing ring true in his ears.

"_I have every confidence I will not fail…."_

Her piercing yellow eyes still fixed his gaze on him. They were just as sharp as the first time he had met her. Then she was so innocent. So new to the world. Impersonating an Oracle Knight had not been an easy task. When he saw her… those three girls…. They were lost. Dirty. Forgotten.

How he had helped them was a mystery.

A flurry of memories.

She was different the first time. Jade eyes, jade hair, ragged clothes. But still, apart from the other two, there was sharp to her eyes. A bite.

Now he might never see them again.

Immediately after Gem and Saber Tooth led him to his quarters, he sat down on the edge of the bed. Outside the sunny window, a hugs oak tree stood, leaves bent as if to hug the earth itself.

So many memories were under that tree with her.

"Damn….." he mumbled.

For months he'd been trying to help her gain her memory. When he saw her in the streets a month later, she didn't even know him. Blood stained her clothes, and she held the look of a terrified animal that was hunted. She had no memory of her name, so he gave her the one the two girls he had seen called her.

As months passed, they grew closer. A bond formed, and soon the Elders began putting them on more and more missions together. Her then yellow eyes still held that bite.

And it was time.

He was ready.

"She's not dead." Jalek said. "And I have to find her."

Quickly, he grabbed up a giant satchel of items, one for emergencies. One last glance cast over his shoulder to their oak tree gave him all the boost he needed.

The hallway was empty, surprisingly. Many other assassin's walked around. The newest recruits, however, were off in training. Iris was so good, she had skipped training altogether and had gone straight to missions.

The organization had been finding orphans every month, luring them into the society with promises of money and family. They weren't wrong. But living a life of killing was not one he wished to live. Not without Iris.

Casually, he tucked the satchel behind his cloak, and began at a brisk walk down the hall. The door came closer and closer.

His pace quickened.

When he threw the doors open, he melted into the crowd. The theifs court was filled with hood and cloaks, so he blended in immediately. The wrought iron gate on the large field of grass loomed closer.

The mansion, from far distance, was even more grand than the inside.

He placed a hand on the gate, peering into the streets of the bustling town. An undisclosed location, as the elders called it. With one last look to the mansion, he pushed the gate open.

He loved her, and he sure as heck was not going to sit around and wait.

**Now Jalek's thrown in the mix?! How much crazier can it get? And wait….. he knew her before her memories were gone? Can he be the one to bring her memories back? Can-**

**Sync: Stop with the narrator voice.**

**Me:…..**

**Me: You just crushed my dreams.**

**Sync: (snorts)**

**Me: Bad days. They have that way of devastating everything.**

**Anyways, (Shoves sync in closet before he can say anything else) Ill update soon! See what happens next!**


	10. A Snake in the Trees

**Oh. My. Goodness.**

**I cannot possibly explain how it feels to revisit fan once again. Its almost like, how do I put this….. it's like watching Tales of the Abyss all over again. Even the first season of Fairy Tail.**

**But it is official. **

**I'm back.**

**I apologize to all of you guys that it's taken me so long to update. Years. Dang. Most of it was me procrastinating, losing interest, dealing with personal issues *ahem*school*ahem*, but most frustratingly…. This MAJOR case of writers block. I would constantly pull out my stripey little notebook brimming with my ideas, flip through and say, "TODAY IS THE DAY." And I'd start typing away. Then distractions happened….. let's just say….**

**Ideas: Hahahaaa! Sucker! *flies out window***

**But now I am back! I really am. And with balancing my schoolwork, web comic ideas, and start of a YouTube channel, I am being completely honest when I say I have absolutely NO CLUE when I will update or how frequently. I'll hope to have a new one up each week, but I'd say those are more of guidelines….**

**Anyways, let's begin with our trip to Auldrant, once again! Oh, this chapter might be a little short. I wanted to do an I'M BACK thing. I'll update next Friday if I can. **

**~S.T.G.G**

It was exactly seventeen hours, fifteen minutes, and forty-two seconds until the traders were supposed to arrive. Dawn exactly. But with the shadows the dark clouds above were casting, and the turmoiling noises from within, I doubted they would make it one time. The stench of rain and thunder was thick in the air; the animals seemed to smell it too, since most of them had disappeared into their burrows in the ground or their dens, blockaded heavily with fallen trees which only they could get into. I peered to my right and narrowed my eyes at a liger in the clearing a little ways away from where I was hiding in the tree. It sniffed the grass a little bit where my foot was once, and then turned away with its nose sniffing the air, allowing me to relax my tense muscles and once again look down the trail.

As nice as it was in the woods, I never really cared much for the smell of trees.

Don't know why.

It might've been because I was raised around machines and the stank of death…. either way, it didn't matter. Even with the pitying glances from the kids at school, and the adults trying to wipe the grime off my face and make me into a good little boy, I didn't much care about it. My attitude and personality is just like the fire that fueled our mechanisms and smokers: fiery, temperamental, quick-spreading, and always, always, a lethal killer.

_Just like my pop taught me. _

I groaned inwardly and immediately flicked my wrist.

_Oww! Stop it! _

_**You're the one that's in my mind. I have the right to needlessly flick my wrists whenever I choose. **_

_It's not like I have a choice, stupid. Your little thoughts about your 'fiery personality' and 'lethal killer' is starting to flame into my corner, so I suggest you scoot out before I douse it. _

Stooping low, I swung a leg over the branch and let it hang there, then twisting my neck so I could still see through the gap in the trunk. Still nothing seemed to be climbing over the hill, so I slowly grabbed the hand scythes off my back by their handles, flipping them around incessantly.

_You're going to get me killed. _

_**Stop referring to us as me. It's getting irritating. **_I thought. He wouldn't shut up, and I really needed to concentrate. My right hand jolted and clenched into a fist.

_It is me. Just because that stupid man we chose didn't fix us right, this is my body. I had it before you did._

My right hand slammed roughly down onto my knee and I moved my leg before it slammed down again, blinking as the rough bark scratched my skin off my hand.

_**Stop. We need both hands right now. **_

_Then stop moving. _

_**I woul- **_A sound of pebbles being kicked aside brought my attention back.

I looked up at the sky to get a good look at the sun, but it was blocked by the oncoming clouds. No-one should be arriving this early. The score said they'd be coming in…. sixteen hours or so. It was odd that someone be around here. Lest anyone at all.

I swung my other leg over and leaned, gripping the orange-red metal of the scythe's handle hard. After only a moments wait, the scuffling of the dirt path came closer, and I saw that it was a guy, yes, but not the ones I was looking for. Even so, a fun game of cat and mouse would be good to get my muscles freshened up and my mind witty enough for the next one.

_Stupid boy. We don't need any blood yet. _

A man with blazing blue hair and full black outfit came into view, toting a large bag stuffed with gels and clothes, and two pouches by his side. I felt my lip rise into a snarl. An easy kill.

_**Work with me correctly this time, idiot. **_

I jumped and propelled myself silently towards the man; the wind couldn't have even heard me.

But he did.

In a swift movement, he had snapped one of his pouches open and threw some kind of small, glowing missile at me. My right arm swung in front of me and spun the scythe quickly, creating a small vortex of air as my lips spoke a Fonic arte for me. The missile bounced off, headed for a nearby tree… and exploded.

"Gaah." I said angrily. My left leg twisted, fully in control by the person in my head, and with it my body turned also into a perfect and graceful flip.

"I have a mission. I am undeterred." A voice spoke. It took me a moment to realize it was the man.

I looked up and watched the blue-haired man with a suspicious gaze. He seemed unfazed, and picked up his bag, which I hadn't realized he had set down. With a scuffle of feet, he began to walk away again, gently patting his side as if looking for something.

_**What are you doing? Pick me up.**_

_Stop, Cleff. Didn't you see that arte? _

I grunted and struggled to turn my left leg and right arm to help me stand.

_**DO IT! **_I yelled in my mind.

My arm and leg moved finally, and I launched myself forward. I raised my scythes, but he was quicker than ever, dashing right next to me and reaching to grab my arm. I ricocheted off a rock and landed back on a branch.

"I understand you probably want money, but I need this right now." The man said easily. "So I'll keep moving along. You can follow me if you want but that will do nothing for you."

_Calmly. He says it CALMLY. GET YOUR HEAD TOGETHER IDIOT DON'T YOU REALIZE THAT NO ONE WITH THAT FONIC ARTE SPEAKS CALMLY TO A MUGGER LIKE YOU. _

_**I don't give a crap.**_

_He's with the Abyssal dumbo. That arte? Same one that took out your ear. _

My hand reached for the charred and horrible stump that once was my right ear. I felt the skin and closed my eyes with a sigh.

"Don't talk much? Ah well."

The footsteps continued, so I stood up and followed quietly in the trees.

"Well, as I can hear you're following me, I might as well have a conversation."

I peered through the leaves and saw that the man wasn't even looking for me. He was casually walking and talking, his gaze straight forward on the path out of the Cheagle Woods. I hopped to another branch and pushed off two cheagles that were sitting there, careful not to lean so far as to fall into the burbling creek below me.

"My name's Jalek. My favorite color is…. Green. Yeah, I love the forest. Even these guys."

I threw a spare knife I had at him and he leaned backwards, petting a small Cheagle as it wizzed by him and thunked into the thick wood. I cursed.

"Wish my friend could see them. She loves monsters, even though she's all rough and tough. Well, the nice ones anyways."

He hopped over another knife and blew up a monster that was preparing to lunge from the shadows, then proceeding down the path.

_Stop. Stop. _

My right hand twitched, but I kept my muscles in order.

_**Go.**_

"I think my mother was a merchant…. My older sister was a soldier… my dad worked at a pub in Grand Chokmah…. and thats pretty much it. I wear glasses sometimes, because I can't read my scrolls or the score at night without them."

I got close enough, slipping my way through the shadows of the trees and trying to keep an eye on the man. A liger approached, sniffed, and then backed away back to the woods.

"I'm looking for a lost friend. Do you think you've-"

I leaped, flying towards his head with my blades aching to slice him, but was blown against a trunk forcefully. The impact caused my image to blur, and extreme pain lanced through my side. I winced.

_Get up! Get away!_

_**Can't….**_

My vision blurred and I felt blood.

"That was rude of you… oh." The blue mop of hair turned to face me. "I thought you dodged that." It came closer, bobbing and weaving against the green background of the forest. My eyes grew heavy and I swore internally.

"I can't fix this. I'll have to pick you up….."

The voice was faint.

_**Can….t….**_

_Cleff!_

Before I passed out, far ,far, far, in the distance, I swore I saw a flash of red and brown. My hand was rested on my stomach, and I felt the blood and bones jutting out.

"Be okay…. In a second…."

The man's voice was the last thing I swore to kill before I was consumed by the pain and black.


End file.
